Search PubMed⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

G Moscatelli

Publications and source records attributed to G Moscatelli.

34 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

[Thallium-201 re-injection: a new method for the identification of viable myocardium in patients with fixed deficits of myocardial uptake].

Fixed defects on thallium-201 myocardial scintigraphy which have been traditionally interpreted as myocardial scar, may in fact be viable myocardium. This has been shown to be the case on 24 hour delayed imaging, positron emission tomography and repeat thallium imaging after coronary angioplasty or bypass surgery. We studied 25 suspected post myocardial infarction ischemia patients who had one or more fixed defects on exercise thallium scintigraphy. Immediately after the conventional delayed images, a second TI-201 injection of 1 mCi (re-injection) was given, followed by an additional set of images. After re-injection, 41% of fixed defects on the conventional delayed images showed increased thallium uptake as evidence of viable myocardium, and 46% of partially reversible defects on the conventional delayed images showed a concordant but increased uptake. Re-injection provided the only evidence for ischemia in 4 patients (16%) and documented ischemia in a new vascular territory in 3 patients (12%). Thus, we conclude that thallium re-injection is an improved technique for assessing myocardial viability in patients after myocardial infarction.

Adult↗

Antibody-guided diagnosis: an Italian experience on CEA-expressing tumours.

Within the Italian CNR Biomedical Technology programmes a large multicentre clinical trial on CEA-expressing carcinomas has been carried out. F(ab')2 fragments of anti-CEA monoclonal antibody (MAb) FO23C5, radiolabelled with either 131I or 111In, were supplied to 10 different Italian nuclear medicine departments. Over 500 patients with gastrointestinal, lung, breast, and other carcinomas have been investigated. The results obtained in our nuclear medicine department are reported here. In GI cancer group, the 131I compound showed better results except in liver metastases detected only in 28/57 patients. In the lung cancer group, very satisfactory results were achieved in primary tumours and local or systemic recurrences: 111In tracer was preferentially used. In the breast cancer group immunoscintigraphy proved to be helpful in differential diagnosis of neoplastic and benign bone lesions. Significant improvements of diagnostic sensitivity were achieved in GI cancer patients by means of i.p. administration. Finally, 12 patients with advanced disease were given different 131I radioiodinated MAbs (100 mCi average dose). Administration route was either i.v. (3 cases) or i.p. (9 cases). Clinical and instrumental evidence of complete (1) or partial (7) response was observed in 8 patients.

Antibodies, Monoclonal↗

Improved immunoscintigraphy by subcutaneous injection of 99mTc or 111In labelled F(ab')2 fragments of an anti-melanoma monoclonal antibody.

Technetium-99m and/or 111In labelled F(ab')2 fragments of a melanoma associated MoAb 225.28S were injected i.v. in 80 patients affected by stage I to IV malignant melanoma. Seventy five percent of metastatic lesions already documented by other methods were detected by immunoscintigraphy, which was also capable of detecting a certain number of unknown metastases. However, we observed a lower percentage of positive scans in liver, lung and skin because of the poor tumour to background ratio. In some patients, subcutaneous (s.c.) injection allowed us to visualize documented metastases undetected by i.v. administration. An equal amount of non-specific F(ab')2 fragments (MoAb 4C4) injected s.c. as a negative control showed no positive scans. Clinical studies and chromatographic patterns of patient serum samples suggest that the s.c. route of administration offers, with respect to the i.v. route, the advantage of reducing vascular background and aspecific accumulation in liver, probably because of retention of possible contaminants by the lymphatic system.

Antibodies, Monoclonal↗

Prognostic value of persistent thallium-201 defects that become reversible after reinjection in patients with chronic myocardial infarction.

BACKGROUND: The presence of defects at stress-redistribution thallium-201 scintigraphy is related to a higher risk of cardiac events. However, the prognostic value of defects that become reversible after reinjection is not known. In this study we evaluated the prognostic contribution of stress-redistribution-reinjection with special regard to 3-hour fixed defects that become reversible after reinjection. METHODS AND RESULTS: We studied 122 patients with chronic myocardial infarction (>2 months) and suspected or known residual ischemia, with stress-redistribution-reinjection planar scintigraphy. Thallium scans were analyzed by three observers (three segments per view, 5-point score) and classified as normal, fixed, and reversible. The lung/heart ratio was also calculated. At a median follow-up of 47 months, 10 patients had hard events (four deaths and six myocardial infarctions) (group I), 12 patients had unstable angina (group II), 12 patients underwent planned coronary artery bypass grafting or percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (group III), and 86 patients had no events (group IV). The presence of fixed defects that became reversible after reinjection did not identify patients at higher risk. The number of reversible defects at 3 hours was significantly higher only in patients who underwent revascularization. Unstable angina was not predicted by any scintigraphic pattern. The variables that were statistically related to hard events by univariate analysis were increased lung uptake, reversible cavity dilation, and the number of fixed defects that remained fixed after reinjection. By Cox multivariate analysis, the strongest predictor of hard events was the presence of more than three fixed defects that remained fixed after reinjection as a marker of irreversible myocardial damage. CONCLUSIONS: (201)Tl reinjection is a useful approach for not only detecting viable myocardium but also risk stratification in patients with chronic myocardial infarction.

Angina, Unstable↗

Radioimmunotherapy trials in germ testicular carcinoma: a phase I study.

Two patients with germ cell testicular cancer were submitted to radioimmunotherapy (RIT) by using the monoclonal antibody 131I-radiolabelled (MoAb) H17E2, raised against placental alkaline phosphatase (PLAP). Both patients had been previously treated with repeated chemotherapy regimens assisted by autologous bone marrow transplant (ABMT), that, in the end were unsuccessful, thus necessitating further experimental treatment. RIT was well tolerated and the targeting of multiple neoplastic lesions was satisfactory. Nevertheless, the clinical results of treatment were minimal owing to the extension of the tumour. The data obtained suggest the possibility of applying this form of treatment in patients with minimal residual disease after previous traditional chemotherapy regimens.

Adult↗

Radioimmunotherapy of gastrointestinal cancer and glioblastomas.

Two groups of patients with gastro-intestinal (GI) tumours (41) and recurrent glioblastoma (GBM), (17) underwent radioimmunotherapy after the failure of traditional treatments. A number of different MAbs were employed (anti-CEA and anti-Tenascin) which were labelled with I-131. The radiopharmaceuticals were administered by the intraperitoneal and intratumoral routes. As a rule the cycles were repeated to enhance the effectiveness of RIT. No significant early or late adverse effects were recorded. HAMA development was observed in all GI cases but only in a few GBM patients. The cumulative dose delivered to the target tumors was considerable (mean 8,900 cGy) in the GI group, and was much higher in the GBM patients (mean 51,700 cGy) owing to the particular modality of injection. Survival improved in both series of patients. The objective responses to RIT were promising: in the GI group 10 complete remissions (CR) and 6 partial remissions (PR) were observed, while in the GBM group 3 long-lasting CRs and 3 prolonged PRs were documented.

Brain Neoplasms↗

Thallium-201: what do we gain from new clinical protocols and acquisition procedures? The Italian Study on Thallium Reinjection/SIRT).

Nine medical centers, equipped with the same gamma camera and computer software, participated in this multicenter study on thallium-201 reinjection imaging. Preliminary findings for the first 143 patients with ischemic heart disease and perfusion defects at stress imaging are reported. Eighty-eight patients were reinjected at rest after conventional stress-redistribution imaging. Another 55 patients were reinjected at rest on a separate day. After segmental comparison of conventional redistribution versus stress imaging, differences > 1 in the segmental scores on a reduced 3 point scale identified 58 patients with irreversible or mainly irreversible defects (dominant scar pattern) and 85 patients with reversible or mainly reversible defects (dominant ischemic pattern). When reinjection was compared to stress images, 24 patients out of 58 with a dominant scar pattern at the conventional analysis were then assigned to the group with a dominant ischemic pattern. No clinical variables or exercise stress data were found to be significantly different in this patient subgroup. Only 4 out of 85 patients with a dominant ischemic pattern were reassigned to a dominant scar pattern after reinjection scoring. These preliminary results of the SIRT study confirm the consistent problem of scar overestimation by conventional stress-redistribution imaging and the clinical value of the thallium-201 reinjection procedure for differentiating viable from necrotic myocardium.

Cell Survival↗

Immunoscintigraphy of primary and metastatic colorectal cancers with radiolabelled monoclonal antibodies anti-CEA.

Thirteen patients with a diagnosis of primary colorectal tumour and 68 patients previously operated for colon cancer underwent an immunoscintigraphy carried out with monoclonal antibodies anti-CEA F(ab')2, labelled with 131I or 111In. These studies led to the detection of all primary tumours and of most of their associated lesions (7/8). In this group 15 neoplastic deposits previously undetected were demonstrated, allowing an improvement in the patient staging before the operation. In the group of the 68 operated patients, immunoscintigraphy succeeded in imaging 96 out of 121 known lesions: the best outcomes were obtained for abdominal and pelvic recurrences as well as for lymph nodes lesions. The lowest levels of sensitivity were observed for liver metastases. An enhancement of the immunoscintigraphy sensitivity was obtained when the radiopharmaceutical was injected intraperitoneally. In 50 patients, this alternative administration route was successful in detecting 91/107 cancer deposits and, in particular, liver metastases were found out in 36/42 cases.

Antibodies, Monoclonal↗